My Redemption
by apstary
Summary: My version of season two.  Damon/Elena.  Now that Katherine is back in town, how will she wreak havoc on the town of Mystic Falls?
1. Let the Games Begin

Authors Note: I do not own Vampire Diaries or any of its characters. This starts immediately after the end of the last episode of season one. I am going to slowly build up a Damon/Elena romance, but it is going to be a slow process that hopefully would be similar to how the show itself develops this romance. Please review!

Sometimes things happen so fast, too fast. In the blink of an eye everything can change and your life can be turned upside down and inside out. And what does that leave you with? What does that leave anyone with? How is a person supposed to know when a decision she makes will change everything as she knows it to be.

It was in this moment that Elena Gilbert's life was about to change. The moment that she found her father's body in her kitchen, laying lifelessly on the kitchen floor. What she didn't know was that life was about to get more complicated than she thought it could.

Elena knew better than to follow strange noises. Even though Elena was in her own house, Jeremy or Jenna would have answered her. It was at that point that she should have ran, but Elena, always curious was determined to investigate. When she walked into her kitchen it was unlike anything she could have ever imagined. The man that she just found out was her father, John Gilbert, was laying dead in the middle of the room. Her senses were filled with the sight and smell of blood. She had never seen so much blood before. Immediately she screamed out of shear fear, but before she could even let a sound out a hand enclosed around her mouth.

"Now, now," Katherine Pierce said softly into her ear, "You wouldn't want to wake your family."

Elena was absolutely terrified; she knew immediately who was holding her hostage even though she couldn't see her face. She had no choice but to calm herself. If Katherine wanted her dead, she would be dead. An attempt to free herself from Katherine's hold would only make the situation worse. Elena nodded slowly and stopped struggling.

"Ahh, much better," Katherine said as she released Elena from the tight hold that she had on her.

As Katherine circled around Elena so that they were face to face Elena couldn't believe her eyes. This monster looked exactly like her, even more so now that Katherine was dressed in Elena's own clothes.

"Fascinating, isn't it?" Katherine asked, "They said that we were similar, but I could have never imagined anything like this." Katherine gently touched one of the strands of Elena's hair and paused to look her over once again.

"Clearly, I am the prettier one, though" Katherine said as she bounced back to where the pool of blood was slowly filling the room. She idly swirled a finger around the blood of Elena's dead father and savored the flavor as she put it to her lips.

Elena had enough of this, she wanted answers and if Katherine wanted to kill her she would have done it by now.

"Why are you here, Katherine?"

"Are you not happy to see me Elena?" Katherine rushed to Elena and quickly pinned her against the wall by her neck. "Because I am absolutely thrilled to meet you! I have been ever so anxious to meet the girl that my boys are making such a fuss about."

Elena, now choking, did not know if she was going to live or die. There was fear in her eyes and she knew it. Katherine could immediately sense the fear coming off of Elena in waves.

"Tell you what," Katherine said thoughtfully, loosening her grip on Elena's neck slightly, "Why don't you send a little message for me. Tell Stephan and Damon that I'm here," Katherine lowered Elena and leaned in and whispered in Elena's ear, "Let the games begin…"

With that Katherine slammed Elena into the stairwell and disappeared out the door. The words that Katherine spoke to her rang in her head, _Let the games begin…_


	2. Jealousy

Damon walked away from the Gilbert house completely confused and astonished. He had just kissed Elena. Wait…He had just kissed Elena?

He let the last ten minutes of his undead life replay over and over as he walked back to his house.

Damon knew he was beginning to feel something for Elena recently. Since he met Elena it was something about her that was unlike any person he ever met before. Damon was unsure as to when he began to feel things for Elena other than shear annoyance but all that he knew now was that he was positively giddy.

As Damon continued to think about Elena he realized that in the beginning Elena was a sort of competition for him; a way to keep his brother on edge. Sure, Elena looked almost identical to Katherine but Damon knew from the start that she wasn't and never could be. Katherine was ruthless and cunning, a fiery, unstoppable woman that got her way no matter what. Katherine possessed every bad quality that drove Damon absolutely wild. Elena, on the other hand, was caring and compassionate, loyal to a fault, and giving in a way that he had never seen in a human before.

There were so many occasions that Damon recalled spending time with Elena and not wanting to kill her. In fact Damon found himself wanting to protect Elena more so now than ever. The road trip, the dance they shared on the lawn, and even her unbending trust Elena had in him to do the right thing were all factors in the growing affections that Damon shared for Elena. Elena saw humanity in him when he didn't even think it was possible himself.

Those last few minutes on Elena's porch though were an entirely different story. Damon saw Elena wanting to protect him this night. Elena wanted him to live when she could have just as easily left him to die. When he left he realized his feelings for Elena ran deeper than just a physical attraction. He knew he should have just went back to the boarding house but Damon found himself needing to thank Elena, to see her again, and let her know how much he appreciate what she did.

When Damon realized Elena wasn't home yet he figured he should have a talk with her brother, once again something that Damon would not generally do but felt morally compelled to. After he left Jeremy's room he was about to leave but saw Elena walking up to her door. As Damon told her how he felt and thanked her he decided to place a chaste kiss on her cheek. He figured this would probably be a once in a lifetime opportunity to kiss the girl that belonged to his brother. There was nothing sexual about it; it was not a heated kiss that two people in love share or a kiss full of desire that lovers have in the heat of the moment. It was just a simple kiss. As he pulled away everything changed. Their lips met again in a kiss that was more than just lustful or full of desire. Their second kiss was about need and longing. Damon knew that this went beyond the idea of forbidden fruit, but he honestly didn't care.

It was when their kiss was interrupted by Jenna that Damon was sent back into reality. As Elena left him on the porch to go inside the house Damon touched his fingers to his lips and tried to savor the moment they just shared. Now that he was replaying the events in his head something didn't feel right. He now began to use his vampire speed to race back to the boarding house. Damon needed a drink. No, Damon needed several drinks.

When he walked inside the boarding house he was surprised to hear Stephan on the phone with Elena. He wondered if Elena would tell Stephan what happened. Damon knew that Elena would never lie to Stephan but this could destroy his little brother and Stephan and Elena's entire relationship. As he poured himself a drink to begin to ponder the happenings of the night Stephan got off the phone with Elena and stared at Damon while he began to drink his bourbon.

"I am not really in the mood for a staring contest tonight Stephan," Damon said, quickly annoyed with his little brother.

Stephan looked down, but looked back up just as quickly with what appeared to be sympathy in his eyes.

"Damon I know things have been out of control lately; everything that has been happening with the founder's council and Pearl, not to mention myself. But I wanted to thank you for being a part in helping make things right in Mystic Falls. Elena thinks that you are beginning to change, to show something other than hate and violence. I really hope she is right Damon…"

Stephan looked Damon directly in the eyes and Damon pulled his drink up to his lips to take a long healthy drink. Stephan sighed and began to speak again.

"I don't know what this thing is with Elena and you. If you think you have feelings for her I want you to know that this is not a competition. As long as Elena and I are happy together you will not be interfering with us. I am not holding her hostage, Damon. If she decides that she no longer wants to be together, it is her decision to make. However, she made it quite clear tonight that I am the person she is in love with," Stephan paused to look directly at Damon. Damon just looked into his drink and smirked slightly.

"I know I can trust Elena's life in your hands. That is a relief after everything that has happened and things that we might find ourselves up against in the future. But Damon, don't betray her trust. She sees you as a friend now, don't put her in a position to make her regret that decision." Damon just stared at Stephan. It was quite clear that Stephan didn't know what had just happened, but had Elena said something to Stephan to prompt this speech? Damon decided to play it safe and test the waters with Elena earlier to see where they stood.

"Sure thing Stephan," Damon quickly avoided, not wanting to get his brother all defensive and argumentative. "Whatever you say."

Stephan rolled his eyes and leaned back on the couch pinching the bridge of his nose. He was about to say something more when his phone began to vibrate on the table next to him. The phone said that Elena was calling him; Stephan immediately became confused because he had just gotten off the phone with her. He answered quickly and her Elena stifling and clearing in pain on the other end of the phone.

"Elena's what's wrong?" Stephan almost screamed.

Damon who had been much too interested in pouring himself another glass of bourbon used his vampire hearing to clearly understand Elena's next words on the other end of the phone.

"Katherine is back in Mystic Falls"

Stephan immediately hung up and Damon shattered the glass in his hand. An all too familiar feeling passed through Damon as he was connecting the night's previous events to the current ones. _That bitch._ Damon instantly thought. He felt like a fool for believing that Katherine could even come close to portraying Elena. He knew instantly that it was Katherine that he kissed merely an hour or so ago, and not Elena.

"Damon, are you coming with me?" Stephan said urgently.

Damon just nodded and both brothers immediately left the boarding house for the Gilbert residence.


	3. So Much Blood

Damon was not prepared for the scene that he walked in on. The smell of human blood, though not Elena's, was overwhelming. There was blood in every corner of the kitchen where John Gilbert lay dead. When Damon and Stephan walked in Stephan immediately went to Elena's side, who was sitting next to the stairs with silent tears streaming down her face. It wasn't Damon's place to go to Elena, that was what Stephan was for, and not even a kiss with her imposter was going to change that.

"Elena, look at me!" Stephan shouted at her. Elena looked briefly away from where she was watching her father and looked at Stephan in the eyes. When she realized that he was here she threw her arms around him and began crying all over again.

"It's okay. Shhh. I'm here. Are you hurt?" Stephan asked as he began to check her body and saw her already bruised neck. Upon seeing this Stephan's eyes flaired and turned. "What did she do to you?"

Damon instantly turned his attention back to Elena. He knelt down next to where Elena and Stephan were and examined Elena's neck. "Katherine must have had a pretty tight grip on her. She should be okay," Damon looked at Elena with soft eyes as he took in her emotional state. "Stephan we should bring her into the living room." Stephan merely nodded as he picked Elena up and sat her down on the sofa. "Damon, I am going to call Alaric and check on Jenna and Jeremy, keep an eye on Elena." Damon nodded at his brother's request.

When Stephan left the room Damon was able to get a good look at Elena. Her neck was bruised, tears were still streaming down her face, but she looked like she was regaining more knowledge of her surroundings.

Damon compared her outfit to the one he last saw her in, completely different. He just had to know. Damon grabbed her hand, which she barely regarded.

"Elena, what do you remember?" Damon gently asked.

It took her a minute to regain enough composure to form words but eventually she spoke.

"I….I came home. I opened the door after I got off the phone with Stephan and I heard a noise in the kitchen. I went into the kitchen and saw blood everywhere, John…my father, was dead…"

Damon immediately knew that he was fooled by Katherine. How stupid could he be? Of course, Elena would never have kissed him. Anger bubbled up in Damon. How could he think that Katherine could ever pass for Elena? He turned his attention back to the words that Elena was speaking.

"She came out from behind me, threatened my family if I screamed. When I asked her what I wanted she threw me against the wall by my neck and held me there as I choked. I agreed to give a message for her and she let me down."

"What was the message Elena?"

"She said, let the games begin."

Damon couldn't believe what he was hearing. How dare Katherine come into his town and mess with the people he cared about. He looked at Elena and wish that he could take her pain away. He wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her and tell her it was going to be okay just like his brother did. _I am not going to let anyone, or anything hurt her _Damon thought to himself. Damon was snapped back into reality by his brother's urgent calls.

"Damon!"

Damon rushed up the stairs with Elena close behind. When they reached Jeremy's room Damon noticed the lack of a noticeable heartbeat from the boy. Damon also noticed an empty pill bottle next to Jeremy on the bed.

"We need to call an ambulance, Damon, now!"

Immediately Damon turned around and blocked Elena from entering the room.

"What are you doing? Why can't I see my brother? What's wrong?" Elena screamed.

"Elena, please come back downstairs with me," Damon interjected.

"No, you are not going to stop me from seeing my brother!"

Elena sidestepped Damon, and Damon didn't have the heart to stop her. When Elena saw the scene before her she collapsed again. Stephan was quickly by her side telling her that they needed to get Jeremy to a hospital before it was too late. Damon stepped out into the hallway to make a call.

"Sheriff Forbes, Hi yes Damon Salvatore here. We have a situation at the Gilbert residence that I believe is vampire related. John Gilbert is dead in her kitchen…No Elena is upstairs, which actually leads me to our other problem. Jeremy is unconscious in his room, I checked his pulse it is very faint. I think he might have taken some of Elena's sleeping pills…Ok thank you Sheriff." Damon hung up the phone and walked back into Jeremy's room. Elena was sitting with her knees pulled to her chest slowly rocking.

"Jen..Jenna…Is Jenna ok?" Elena babbled quietly.

"Yes I already checked she is sleeping. I think that Katherine put her under compulsion. Her heartbeat is strong but when I tried to wake her she kept mumbling about how she needed to stay asleep." Stephan said.

"Stephan, we need to get Elena to the hospital as well. She has considerable bruising, plus with everything that has happened tonight it might not be a good idea." Damon said to Stephan quietly.

Elena quickly spoke up at that. 'No, I am not going to the hospital. Ever since the car crash, they took me there, I can't go back, I just can't!" Elena pleaded as she was holding tight onto Stephan.

"The Sheriff is almost here. I am going to go downstairs to talk to her. She will probably want to talk to you Elena." Damon looked at Elena in the eyes and she nodded. "Stephan, get Elena to her room, the paramedics will be here soon." Damon paused listening at the slightest sound of a heartbeat. "He needs to get there soon." Stephan nodded at his brother and began to walk Elena to her room as the red and white lights of the ambulance showed up outside.


	4. What Else Could Go Wrong?

When the police arrived they were not expecting to walk into a scene as brutal as the one in Elena's kitchen. Many were overwhelmed by the blood and couldn't even bear to be in the kitchen. For those that could however, they looked a little green in the face. After much scrutiny the Sherriff claimed that the attack was defiantly vampire. Only until the Sheriff and Damon really examined the crime scene did Damon notice that John's ring was gone. He cursed himself again for not noticing this sooner; Damon seemed to be missing on all the obvious signs today for some reason. Jeremy was immediately rushed to the hospital and once Sheriff Forbes took Elena's statement both Elena and Stephan left for the hospital. Alaric got to Elena's house and was able to somehow wake Jenna up enough to get her through police questioning and to the hospital with Alaric.

"Sheriff I cannot thank you enough for being discreet about this situation. I know that John is a big community leader and that there will be questions." Damon said.

"Of course. The attack is certainly vampire, just more brutal than the ones I have seen in the past. The ambulance took Jeremy away and with that most of the onlookers left. I believe we were able to get John out of here unnoticed." The Sheriff said as her cell phone went off.

"Sheriff Forbes here…Oh my god, is she ok?...I'll be right there!" Sheriff Forbes hung up the phone and began packing.

"What happened?" Damon asked, afraid of another vampire attack by Katherine.

"Caroline, Matt and Tyler have been in a car accident. I need to get to the hospital right away."

"Let me drive you, I am on my there to meet Stephan and Elena as well."

Once Damon got to the hospital he quickly found Elena, Stephan, Jenna, and Alaric. Damon did his best to avoid Jenna's angry eyes, after all she didn't see what she think she saw. Damon pulled Stephan aside while he informed him on what happened back at Elena's house. Stephan merely nodded and said, "Thank you for helping. Elena and I really appreciate it."

"How is she doing anyway?" Damon asked, concerned.

"She is as well as can be expected. She refuses to stay in the hospital, even to have them check her out. I'm not going to argue with her right not, she has been through enough, and she appears to just be emotionally distraught. Whatever Katherine did to her it was only enough to make us angry I think, if she wanted to hurt Elena badly enough she would know more than anyone."

Damon nodded, "Elena and Jenna can't stay at their house. Jenna must have invited Katherine inside in order for her to compel Jenna and kill John."

"I know. I already told Alaric to take Jenna back to his house and Elena will stay at the boardinghouse. Jeremy will be fine. They pump his stomach and got the pills out. His heartbeat is strong now." Stephan finished.

"Yeah, Stephan about that. I don't think we should say anything to Elena right now but…"

"Say anything to me about what?" Elena surprised both of them by coming up behind them.

Damon looked to Stephan and waited.

"Damon, I really don't think now is the time to be keeping secrets from each other. Say whatever it is you have to say." Elena folded her arms over her chest, waiting for a response.

Damon snickered at the irony of her statement, which prompted a confused look from both Stephan and Elena. Stephan sighed, "Whatever you need to say Damon, just tell us. We are all in this together anyway."

Damon noticed the "we" used in the statement and noticed how his brother was trying to include him in the situation.

"Alright, when they took Jeremy I went back to his room and I found a vile of blood…Anna's blood…in the corner of his room. I think he purposely took the pills in order to die with Anna's blood in his system."

Elena put her hand over her mouth and gasped. "I never could have imagined things have been this bad with him. I am such a selfish person. How could Jeremy try and not only kill himself, but to kill himself and become a vampire?"

"Elena, listen to me, you are the most unselfish person I know. Look at me for example, you were the only one that believed in me, trusting whatever humanity that you saw in me, that you still see in me, when no one else did. You were just trying to protect your brother and somehow he still got swept up in all this madness. But none of this is your fault." Damon had grabbed Elena by the shoulders for emphasis. Stephan watched the exchange between the two of them and while he was grateful for his brother's help, he definitely did not need Damon to be a replacement for him.

"Damon's right Elena. Don't put the blame on yourself for Jeremy. This was a decision that he made on his own. Not because of you." Stephan said.

"Right well as long as we are all sharing bad news, there is more. Caroline, Matt, and Tyler are in the emergency room. They were in a car accident and brought here by an ambulance. Matt and Tyler are ok but Caroline is still in surgery, she is expected to be ok though." Damon hated to add more stress to Elena's life right now but that was the last piece of bad news that he could think of to bring Elena. Mine as well get it all out in the open now.

Elena paused for a moment, "Alright, we will go and see them as soon as everything with my brother has cleared up. Thank god they are ok. Do you think that it was something that was caused by Katherine?"

"No I don't think so. There weren't any markings, just a car accident. Matt and Tyler were in the front seat with seat belts on and Caroline was in the back without one. Seems pretty straightforward to me." Damon said briefly. Recounting what the Sheriff told him on their way over here.

"Oh! There is Dr. Reynolds. I'll be back." Elena said as the supervising Doctor over Jeremy's case came back into the room. Stephan went to follow her but Damon grabbed his arm. "Stephan, have you asked Elena what happened yet…before we got there?"

"Yeah, she told me Katherine's message. How very ominous of her. We are going to have to find a way to stop all this before the situation gets out of hand and more people's lives are threatened."

"Agreed, but Katherine has never been one for a plan, so we don't know what to expect and when to expect it."

"Well we will just have to stay alert then. She can't be far, and Katherine has never been one to lay low for long." Stephan finished.

The two brothers walked back to where the rest of the group was. Jenna was still shooting daggers at Damon, who attempted to avoid her gaze.

"Don't you think you have caused enough damage for the night, shouldn't you be somewhere else?" Jenna retorted viciously at Damon.

"Aunt Jenna what is wrong with you? Damon has been more than helpful tonight; we should be thanking him for what he has done." Elena spit back shooting a glare in her Aunt's direction.

"Whatever, I am going to get some coffee," Jenna said.

"I think I'll come with you if that's alright," Alaric asked.

Both Alaric and Jenna walked down the hall away from Stephan, Elena, and Damon.

"Did you do something to upset Jenna," Stephan asked Damon.

"Of course not, I don't know why she is so upset with me. We hung out and had a few drinks once or twice, but I can't think of anything that I have done recently to upset her," Damon lied.

Both Elena and Stephan didn't believe Damon but dropped the questioning for more important matters.

"How is Jeremy?" Stephan asked cautiously.

Elena sighed, "They said he should be alright, he needs to stay here for a week if not longer. Anytime someone tries to commit suicide they are kept in the hospital for several days. But at least he is going to be ok…"

Stephan wrapped his arm around her and placed a kiss on her head.

"Alright," Elena said, "Let's go see what else could have possibly gone wrong today…"

Authors Note: Things are about to get more interesting. I needed to develop the characters and their thoughts in the last couple of chapters. Let me know what you guys think!


	5. Insomnia

Damon wondered whether or not he should tell Elena what happened. It seemed like the logical thing to do, but he knew Elena would be mad. And if she told Stephan it would just him more reason to keep Damon away from Elena. Damon decided to remain quiet about it, but if the right time came to tell Elena, he wouldn't hesitate to do so.

Damon followed behind Stephan and Elena as they walked to the emergency area of the hospital. He wouldn't say that he necessarily cared if these people lived or died but they were important to Elena, so they were important to him.

They approached Matt, Tyler, and Bonnie in the waiting area of the emergency room. Matt and Tyler both had bandages on and Matt appeared to be wearing a cast as well. Bonnie ran up to Elena and embraced her.

"Elena, thank god you're here. How did you find out? Did Caroline's mom call you?" Bonnie asked.

Elena looked down for a moment, regained her composure and finally looked back up at Bonnie with determination. "I found John dead in my kitchen when I got back from the Founder's Day disaster. Katherine was there as well, she more or less threatened all of our lives, and Jeremy tried to overdose on pills." Elena finished and both Damon and Stephan looked at her inquisitively as to how she was doing so well all of a sudden.

"Oh my god! Elena are you alright? Is Jeremy ok?" Bonnie exclaimed.

"Yeah, everything and everyone appears to be alright for right now, well except John I suppose…How are things with Caroline? Matt and Tyler seem to be ok…" Elena asked.

"She is doing well. Her mom is with her right now, they just finished surgery. She wasn't wearing her seat belt and she went through the windshield. She had some internal bleeding." Bonnie said.

"That's good to hear," Elena said while giving her best friend another hug.

Stephan came forward, "Actually Bonnie, I was hoping we could have a meeting soon, with Katherine back we are all going to need to be on the same page and more cautious. I was going to let Alaric know so he could meet us back at the boardinghouse."

"Why can't we meet at Elena's house" said Bonnie, obviously feeling more comfortable at Elena's rather than a vampire residence.

"Katherine has access to Elena's house, she was invited in. Not to mention that the house is in need of good cleanup right about now." Damon interjected.

"Fine, I will meet you guys there shortly. I am just going to take Matt and Tyler home." Bonnie finished.

Both Stephan and Damon gave Elena some space to talk to Matt and Tyler briefly. Neither one of them were good friends with them so they thought it best to remain behind. After a few moments of Elena and Bonnie talking to their friends Elena, Stephan, and Damon left in Jenna's car.

"Alright I texted Alaric and told him to take Jenna back to his house. He will be meeting us at the boarding house as soon as Jenna falls asleep." Stephan started.

"Damon are you sure there is nothing you could think of as to why my Aunt would give you so much attitude? She hasn't had a problem with you recently…" Elena said.

"Not a clue," Damon lied again and continued staring gout the window of the car as they sped back to the house.

When they arrived all three of them sat down on the couch. Damon, once again, poured himself a drink and Elena put her head on Stephan's shoulder. Within minutes Elena was asleep while Stephan and Damon stared at a burning fire. Stephan was contemplating what was ahead for him, he was terrified of Katherine and the mayhem she could cause, but at the same time wanted nothing more than to protect Elena from it. Damon was still thinking about the kiss, he knew it wasn't Elena now, and he needed to erase the entire thing from his memory. It was only doing him harm to keep dwelling on something that didn't even happen.

Stephan quietly told Damon that he was going to call off the meeting for tomorrow morning instead of tonight. He would let the others know and told Damon to be prepared for tomorrow morning. Stephan carried Elena up to his room, as he ascended the stairs Damon watched with a feeling he wasn't used to. Jealousy. Damon sighed and poured himself another drink and continued to sit by the fire.

Some hours later Stephan came down the stairs.

"I'm going out to feed. I've got about two hours till I told everyone to be here so that should be more than enough time." Stephan said. "You should feed too, we need our strength."

"Lil brother I've got plenty of strength. Remember I take the good stuff," Damon said pointing at an empty blood bag next to him and his drink. However, be sure to say hello to Bambi for me, and all the other forest animals."

Stephan rolled his eyes and headed out the back door.

Now that Stephan was gone he realized that he was alone in the house with Elena. He closed his eyes and concentrated on her slow, sleeping heartbeat and the sound of her breathing. Even though he knew it was a bad idea he went upstairs to "make sure she was okay".

When he opened the cracked door to Stephan's room he saw Elena sleeping on his large bed. She was in one of Stephan's t-shirts and her hair fell gently around her face. Damon quietly brushed a stray strand of hair and tucked it back behind her ear.

Damon went back to the living room and laid down on the couch. He knew he should just go to bed, but at this point it was worthless to try and get any sleep with the meeting in under two hours. He closed his eyes attempting to dose off until he heard soft footsteps coming down the stairs.

"Miss me?" Damon asked with his eyes still closed.

"Get over yourself Damon, I woke up and I haven't been able to fall back asleep since."

"I know a few things that would put you to sleep, well eventually it would."

"You're sick." Elena retorted.

"Yeah but you still love me anyway."

Elena moved to lay sit next to him on the couch. She leaned her head back and rested her eyes in the same position that Damon was in. Damon regarded her tired features.

"You want to come close and snuggle next to me?" Damon offered.

"No thanks."

"Just thought I would offer." Damon said while smirking.

Both of them laid there on either sofa till Elena fell back asleep. Damon watched her while she slept for almost an hour. Soon Elena stirred while still sleeping and her head fell on Damon's shoulder. Damon looked down at her, smirked, and rested his head back and closed his eyes.

_Boy Stephan will love this…_


	6. Discovered

Stephan walked into the boarding house about a half an hour before the rest of the gang was expected to arrive. He immediately went upstairs and was surprised not to find Elena in his bed. Remaining calm he went to Damon's room and peeked in, only to not find any sign of Elena their Elena. He went downstairs to the living room where he saw Damon last and stumbled upon a sleeping Elena.

Only Damon was also sleeping next to her.

Elena's head was slumped to the side resting on Damon's shoulder. Stephan was immediately angry and upset by the scene in front of him, but he tried to control his emotions. He knew that Damon felt something for Elena but he also knew Elena didn't feel anything in return for Damon and that she was in love with him. _For now…_ The thoughts ran through his head. Stephan was ultimately afraid of history repeating itself the way it did with Katherine. He knew Elena was nothing like her but at the same time Damon could be quite charming. There were many differences between Stephan and his brother and he hoped that his qualities would be enough to keep Elena his.

Stephan cleared his throat loud enough to wake Damon but not Elena.

"Hello Brother," Damon smirked, already aware of Stephan's irritation.

"What's going on here?" an unamused Stephan inquired.

"Oh, nothing, just the usual. You leave girl in a big bed all by herself in an unfamiliar house and she wakes up during the night wanting some companionship; Someone to cuddle with. So she tippy toes downstairs to find the much more attractive brother and falls asleep on top of—well next to him rather. But don't worry I was there to provide her with what she needed, when she needed it."

Stephan seethed.

"Stephan?" Elena asked cuddling closer to Damon, thinking it was him.

"Yes, baby I'm right here. Don't you worry your pretty little head." Damon cooed.

Elena immediately shot open her eyes and surveyed the scene in front of her. She was sleeping next to Damon, her head on his shoulder. She looked towards Stephan who appeared quite mad, though he was looking at Damon and not her. Elena immediately jumped up and stood closer to Stephan.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't sleep, so I came down here. I was talking to Damon….I guess I fell back asleep." Elena sighed looking downward.

"Elena its ok, you don't have to apologize, you didn't do anything wrong," Stephan paused, "But my idiot brother doesn't know when to shut up."

"Love you too, bro," Damon smirked. "Oh and princess, anytime you want to fall asleep in my arms just let me know."

Elena flushed and laughed a nervous chuckle.

"In your dreams," she retorted.

"Every night…" Damon quickly said back.

Stephan and Elena ascended the stairs. Damon could hear the water turn on and the sounds of talking as they both took a shower. How Damon wanted to be the one in the shower with Elena. He wasn't sure what he was feeling but he was pretty sure jealousy was a front runner in his emotions right now. Bothered by the sound of their laughter Damon decided to go out quickly for a little snack before the meeting.

Everyone was gathered in the Salvatore living room. Damon sat in a large leather arm chair with his feet propped up on the coffee table. Bonnie and Elena sat next to each other on the couch with Alaric standing behind them. Stephan was pacing back in forth in front of the group.

"Ok, what do we know?" Stephan asked the group.

"Katherine is in town. She attacked me, and she also threatened that something more was about to happen. She is also invited into my home, which I am not a big fan of." Elena said.

Stephan nodded, "Has anything seemed strange or unusual to anyone in Mystic Falls? Any injuries or disappearances?"

"Well besides my brother overdosing, I can't think of anything," Elena said softly.

The group was silent.

"Ever since the Founder's Day events when everything went haywire, things have been normal." Bonnie added.

"The Sheriff hasn't told me of anything supernatural going on around here. If there was something happening, I would know about it." Damon said seriously.

"Do we know what Katherine wants? I'm fine with things being normal, or as well as can be expected," Alaric said looking pointedly at Damon and Stephan, "But the only reason I can see that things will get crazy again is if Katherine wants something."

"Do we know where she is?" Bonnie asked.

"These are very good questions," Stephan said, "I have know idea what she wants, when Katherine is involved it could be a multitude of things. She doesn't think logically, she acts on instinct and spur of the moment feeling rather than using her head. My guess is she doesn't have a true plan, just an end result that she wants when it's all over."

"And what would that be?" Elena inquired.

"Like Stephan says, Katherine is unpredictable. She might simple want to cause mayhem and grief to the citizens here. She may do that anyway to cause Stephan and myself problems. My guess is that she is very interested in you, not only because you two look alike but also because of your connection with John and Isabel." Damon added.

Elena stayed quiet and stared at Damon as he spoke. His piercing blue eyes stared into hers and she knew that she should be afraid, but for some reason when Damon said those words she knew she would be safe. The group murmured something else about keeping Elena safe, but Elena still continued to stare back at Damon.

"Do we know where she is?" Alaric asked again snapping Elena back into the situation at hand.

"I would think that she would be in the outskirts of Mystic Falls, perhaps one of the older houses in the woods. She wouldn't stay in town or at a public establishment, too risky." Stephan said.

"I think in order to gain the upper hand in whatever is about to come we should try and locate her." Alaric said.

"I agree," Stephan said, "By knowing where she is and who she might be working with even we might be able to figure out what she is after."

"Alright, we'll go tonight. Damon you cover the north part of the woods, near where Pearl was staying. Alaric, search the south and the west. There aren't many houses there, but it's worth a short. I'll take the east, closest to where the tomb was." Stephan ordered.

"I'm coming with you." Elena stood up and said.

"Absolutely not," Both Salvatore brothers said at the same time. Each looked at each other and while Damon smirked Stephan clenched his jaw in annoyance.

"It won't be safe for you. If she spots anyone of us we wouldn't be able to protect you against her, especially if she is working with other vampires. She is much stronger than us. Stay here at the house with Bonnie." Elena looked defiant but Stephan could also tell that she realized the importance of his words. "Actually Bonnie, I was going to ask you if you knew any locator spells for vampires. I don't know how much power it takes, or even if one exists, but I bet you could handle it if we found one. Maybe Elena and you could work on that while were out." Stephan offered.

"I haven't seen anything so far in my readings and studies in the book, but Elena and I will look." Bonnie smiled, glad to be doing something useful and keeping her friend safe. Bonnie wasn't happy about helping vampires but she would be doing good by killing a powerful one and ensuring Elena's safety.

They all dispersed, in order to begin preparing for the search tonight. Even though it was early morning they needed to get supplies ready in case they were attacked, as well as going over some maps and means of communication in case something happens. Alaric approached Damon and studied him carefully.

"It's impolite to stare." Damon said while looking up some of the abandoned houses in the area.

"We need to talk…now" Alaric said.

Damon got up and followed him into another part of the house. Usually Alaric didn't scare him, but something about his tone prompted Damon to listen for once in his undead life.

"What's up teach? Why so serious?" Damon asked din his best impression of the joker. Alaric merely stared back at him, his eyes boring into Damon's.

"Jenna told me something very interesting the other day." Alaric started. "As you know she has been staying with me through all of this. I have had a very hard time trying to explain everything that has been going on with giving her any real reasons or justification. I struggled through it but I managed to get some story formed that she believes."

"What's your point?" Damon asked impatiently fearing where this was headed.

"Jenna asked me about something that she saw the other night; something that I couldn't make up a story for, or explain even. Jenna told me that the other night she open the front door to find Elena and you kissing." Alaric concluded staring right at Damon.

_Uh oh. _Damon thought. How the hell was he going to talk his way out of this one? Alaric looked as if he was ready to punch Damon, but he didn't know the circumstances of the situation. Damon was trying to figure out what to say as Alaric went off on a rant.

"This is foolish Damon. Isabel told me that you love her, but I think she is wrong. You are unable to love anything. If anything happens to Elena, I would kill you for it. I have this weird sense of protection for her, I don't know why, but you need to stay away from her. Katherine is back and we need everyone on the same side to deal with this, not two vampire brothers battling for the love of a human. She is happy with Stephan, just let her be!" Alaric angrily

"It was Katherine," Damon said quietly.

"What?" Alaric asked back, incredulous.

"I went to Elena's after the Founder's Day events to talk to her. No one has ever given me the benefit of the doubt as to where my loyalties lay. No one has ever trusted me enough to be good. Elena did. I went there to thank her. I briefly told Jeremy that Anna died in the fire. When I left out the front door Elena was coming up the steps, only it wasn't Elena. I didn't notice until well after Jenna saw us and Katherine was invited inside. I said what I needed to say, I was so lost in my own thoughts that I didn't notice her heart wasn't pounding, I didn't notice that the necklace Stephan gave her wasn't on…" Damon paused.

"I gave her a kiss on the cheek. It lead to more." Damon shrugged, "What Jenna told you is the truth. While I am thankful and it didn't happen for all the reasons you said, I wish that it would have. I know though, Elena would never do something like that, she is the exact opposite of Katherine and she is not capable of what that bitch is." Damon finished. He figured honesty was the best route. Hopefully if Alaric accepted his story he would drop it rather than bring it up again or pursue anything further.

"Do you love her?" Alaric asked, snapping Damon out of his thoughts.

"I would give my undead life for her, if that isn't love I don't know what is." Damon smirked.

Alaric nodded. He left Damon and proceeded to walk back downstairs. Damon sighed and leaned against a wall. He was hoping to not have to deal with the kiss, but he figured Jenna would tell someone. Its better that it was Alaric rather than talking about it with Elena. Maybe Damon could remove the memory of the kiss from Jenna's recollection.

As he was debating all this, he heard footsteps coming from around the corner. Damon looked and saw Elena coming out from one of the other rooms staring directly at him. She could have burnt holes through his skin by the way she was staring at him. Her eyes were welled with tears that threatened to spill, however her demeanor remained strong.

She definitely heard his entire conversation.


	7. Flustered and Frazzled

**Author's Note: Things starting to pick up a little more. Hoping to get at least this chapter and maybe the next one up tonight. I also apologize for spelling Stephan/Stefan's name wrong. I think on some level I knew that I was spelling it wrong, but my fingers kept typing it the other way. I am going to leave it the way it is, not only for habit, but just to not change the story from one way of spelling it to another. Enjoy!**

Damon stood very still.

_Shit. _He wasn't sure he had any intentions of telling her at all, especially not like this. He wondered how she would react, what she would say. Judging by her current state he didn't think that this was going to go very well.

Elena moved closer to him. She took slow and deliberate steps, her eyes still locked on Damon's. The tears that formed in her eyes were now gone, replaced by anger and mistrust. She stopped in front of Damon, no further than a foot away. She paused and looked at him for a moment.

Then she slapped him across the face.

It was a hard slap, decent enough for a girl. He knew that Elena meant to hurt him, but a slap from a human wouldn't do the trick. What hurt him more was the emotional aspect. She slapped him because she was angry at him for what he did. Immediately after she grabbed her hand and cradled it to her in pain. Damon gave a small smirk, but tried to contain himself, fearing to only piss her off more.

"How dare you!" Elena screamed in whispered tones. She may be more than upset at Damon but she didn't want to draw the attention of the others.

"You, you kissed me—kissed her! But you thought it was me…I, I would never kiss you Damon. Ever. Not in a million years." Elena stammered.

"Good thing I have all the time in the world then." Damon said jokingly.

She raised her hands to shove away his close proximity but Damon grabbed her before she could make contact.

"Now, now, you don't want to further injure your hand. It's already going to bruise." Damon started. He now held her hands in both of his softly checking for broken bones.

Elena stammered. Damon hands on hers felt nice. But it was nothing more than a soft touch. What was wrong with her? Elena looked up to find Damon's eyes searching hers for acceptance of the situation.

"Look, I appreciate you helping us on Founder's Day. I also meant what I said. I do see good in you and I'm glad that we can trust you now. But whatever you think is going on here, it's not going on. I don't have feelings for you. I care about you as a friend, but that's where it ends. Stephan, your brother, is the man I am in love with, and I don't see that changing in the future."

Elena finished her rant by taking her hands out of his own.

"If it were truly me on the porch that night there would not have been any kiss. Quite frankly, I don't understand how you didn't know that it was Katherine but that is beside the point. I am not going to tell Stephan about this. I don't think Alaric will either. I will have to make up something to tell Jenna….God, that's why she was so mad at you!" Elena started to walk away but Damon grabbed her other hands, the one that she didn't slap him with. He pushed her up against the wall, and got about as close as he could without invading too much personal space.

Elena wondered what the hell Damon was doing. All this was too much for her. Since the conversation with her birthmother, Isabel, things had changed between Damon and her. Elena couldn't quite place the feeling but it was entirely different than the way things were before. Now she was pinned against a wall by him. _Just great._

"Elena you sound like you are trying to convince yourself more so than you are trying to convince me. There is something happening here. Why have things changed so much in the last week or two? I know that you know when I am watching you and I can feel your eyes on me, too. You can trust me still, Elena. But that doesn't mean that I am going to pretend to want you any less." Damon paused, looking Elena up and down for emphasis. "Unless you want to stop pretending." Damon finished by smirking.

"Screw you Damon" Elena said and proceeded to kick him in the only place that she could think of that it would actually hurt him.

Damon drop to his knees with a resounding thud, while Elena walked away.

While Elena was walking back to the rest of her friends she was cursing herself for not thinking the situation through more. Of course Damon would have been more than "excited" by the situation. After she kicked him she more than got a feel of him with her knee. Not that it really mattered, she wasn't some innocent little virgin, but Damon was right. Things between them had been weird. Elena and Damon both sensed it. She didn't think that anyone else had picked up on it yet, counting out Alaric and Jenna, but it was still there.

Elena knew she wouldn't be running into Damon's arms anytime soon, but she was trying to avoid anything and everything that could make matters worse. That included copping a feel. Elena sighed. She was going to make things go back to the way that they were. That would be the only way this situation could be resolved. The only problem with that idea is that Damon had been obsessed with her in one way or another ever since he came to Mystic Falls. Things going back to the way they were meant a crazy, psychotic vampire chasing her around Mystic Falls with intent to make her life more difficult. Or Elena could have a vampire seeking redemption with some weird love infatuation chasing her around Mystic Falls also making her life more difficult. This was clearly a lose-lose situation.

Once Damon was fully recovered he began to process what happened. Once he knew that Elena overheard his conversation with Alaric he decided to take the cocky route. Elena already saw too much vulnerability from him and he wasn't going to let her think he was a big softie. Even if he might be. Then she kicked him where it hurt most; Damon couldn't have planned that any better himself! He saw the look on her face as she ran away. Her cheeks were hot and blushed, clearly confirming that she felt his excitement of the situation.

Damon chuckled to himself as he walked back to the living room. Once he got back Elena was sitting obnoxiously close to Stephan, ignoring him at all costs. If for some reason they had to speak to one another, she refused to look at him. She was a determined little thing after all.

Several hours passed by and Stephan, Damon, and Alaric were getting ready to leave. Elena and Bonnie were still searching through a mess of spells and incantations, searching for anything that might be of use.

"I think we're ready," Stephan said. They had a stockpile of stakes, vervain, and weapons a piece. They weren't planning for a fight but they were definitely prepared in case there was one.

Elena embraced Stephan and told him to be careful. They shared a quick kiss. Meanwhile, Alaric was on the phone with Jenna, explaining he would be back shortly. Elena briefly talk to Jenna as well.

Damon waited for his brother to finish his disgusting love display with Elena before he spoke.

"Alright Elena, plant one on me right there," Damon spoke gesturing for a kiss on the cheek. For the first time in hours she looked at him in the eyes and spoke, "Not a chance in hell Damon." After she quickly diverted her eyes back to Stephan.

He chuckled slightly before outstretching his arms. "How about a hug then?"

Elena clearly annoyed, ignored him and continued to go over the plan with Stephan. "Ok so you will all be back here by midnight? No fighting or confronting, just strictly information gathering."

Everyone was heading out the door. Damon was the last to leave.

"You sure now? I don't want you ever regretting properly saying goodbye to me in case anything happens." Damon snickered.

After waiting several seconds and getting no response from Elena he began to leave. As he was walking towards the street he heard Elena speak, her voice merely above a whisper. If it were not for his vampire healing abilities he would never have caught it.

"Please be careful Damon."


	8. Catching Up

**Author's Note: I am going to try and incorporate some of the others characters in this chapter just so it feels a little more real and explanatory.**

Elena shouldn't have said anything. Really really shouldn't have said anything. But it just came out. It wasn't intentional, but she supposed she really did care if Damon lived or died. That didn't make her love him, but it also didn't make her hate him. At the same time she really didn't want to give him false hope of any kind.

After the boys left Elena and Bonnie had several hours to spare so after they finished looking for spells they decided to make a trip to the hospital to see Jeremy. He was feeling better but he had a lot of anger toward Elena.

"You know," Jeremy said as their pleasantries conversation was winding down, "I still have her blood in my system. If I died I would still turn."

Elena didn't know what to say. She would never want to see her brother become a vampire, but would it be better than the alternative? If the blood is out of his system and he tries to do the same thing again he would die for real and never see him again.

"Jeremy, I would really hope you see everything that your future has in store. You will make it through this. You will be able to go to college, get married, have babies, all things that you can't do once you become a vampire." Elena said. She decided to try logic instead of pleading and begging.

"I don't care about those things," Jeremy stated.

"You might, though. Just give it some time. We can all help you; Jenna, Matt, Bonnie, and me."

"I don't want your help!" Jeremy screamed. A nurse came rushing in to see what was ailing him.

"You'll have to leave now. We would prefer that Jeremy stays calm. Your presence is upsetting him." The nurse said.

"Right, well I'm sorry," Elena said ashamed and hurt, "I'll see you soon Jeremy, I love you."

Elena and Bonnie went to go and check on Caroline. Matt and her mom were by her beside but Caroline was heavily sedated and sleeping. Sherriff Forbes said she was doing good and would only have to stay for a few more days. Elena briefly filled Matt in on what was going on with her side of the family.

"Have you heard from Tyler?" Bonnie asked.

"Yeah, he has been really temperamental lately. I guess it's everything that happened with his dad, but I don't know, something is just off about him." Matt said.

"What do you mean?" Elena pressed.

"He's always figeting or moving around. I have never seen him so on edge." Matt finished.

"Interesting, well let us know if there is anything we can do to help." Bonnie concluded.

Elena and Bonnie left the hospital. It was still early and they decided to go and see Jenna, who was only a mile or two from Stephan's place. When they got there Jenna greeted them. Elena filled her in on her most recent visit with Jeremy. Jenna also told Elena about her daily visits with her nephew.

Bonnie went to the bathroom, and Jenna took that opportunity to ambush Elena.

"Elena! What were you doing with Damon? I mean, I understand he is very good-looking but he is too old for you. Not to mention Stephan's brother!" Elena screamed in whispered tones.

"I know, I know," Elena lied, "I don't know what I was thinking. He helped save my life the night of Founder's Day. In all the hysteria someone tried to grab me. I don't know if they wanted to rob me or something worse. Damon punched them and threatened them. I don't know what would have happened if he wouldn't have been there. I got carried away in the moment." Elena shrugged.

"Just be careful," Jenna pleaded as Bonnie came back into the room.

Bonnie and Elena excused themselves from Alaric's to go back to the boardinghouse. They still had an hour before the guys were expected to come back. Both girls decided to lay down on the couch and distress for a bit. Not long after they drifted off to sleep.

Damon was not finding anything useful. Some houses, but no one was there. He has been searching for hours now and was becoming quite bored. If Katherine was in Mystic Falls she certainly wasn't in these parts.

He decided to head back to the boardinghouse. Maybe he would even get some extra alone time to spend with Elena before Stephan got back. He wanted to ask her about what she said before he left anyway.

"Ah leaving so soon," a voice identical but entirely different than Elena's spoke up behind a tree, "but the games haven't even started yet." She pouted.

"Hello Katherine." Damon said emotionless.

"Well, at least you know it's me this time." Katherine giggled. "Though I rather did like your whipped dog speech. When did you become such a do-gooder Damon?"

"When did you become such a bitch?" Damon spat back.

"Now, it's not nice to talk to women like that…or your elders." Katherine said.

"What do you want?" Damon asked.

"You don't sound excited to see me, Damon." She continued to pout and get upset just like a small child might.

"Why would I? I searched for you for decades, only to find that the very spot you were supposed to be in was void of your presense! I have dreamed of the day when I had finally had you back Katherine, but I don't anymore, I am free of you."

"For that little bitch, Elena? That is what you have given yourself up for? A human?" Katherine exclaimed.

"Guess so," Damon muttered, "but she is everything that you'll never be. Least of all, a bitch." Damon began to walk in the other direction, back to the boardinghouse.

Katherine began to giggle hysterically. Damon turned around to inquisitively stare at her. After a few moments of laughter Katherine spoke.

"You stupid silly boys. How dare you choose her over me. I made you a vampire and this is how you repay me. So stupid. Then to leave the girl you love in the home of a vampire guarded and unprotected, where anyone can find her? That's positively brainless." Katherine smiled when she was finished and disappeared into the forest skipping and humming a tune.

Damon needed to move. And fast.

**Authors Note: Ok I need some suggestions. How can I turn Stephan's character evil? I want Elena to have a reason to dislike him because I don't think that she would turn to him otherwise Stephan gave her a reason to do so. Let me know what you guys think!**


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